When it was taboo to eat your totem, Uganda was truly a ‘green’ society

One day Kabaka Kintu left his Kanyanya palace and went hunting lions with his son, Sebuganda.

During the hunt, the furious lions fought back but the king managed to kill them, according to Buganda lore.  

The king and son returned home with a lot of meat, which was cooked and then eaten.

The meat made them very sick and Kintu announced: “From now on, my children should never eat lion meat.”

He wore one of the lion skins and instructed his men to place another skin on the floor as his official rug (kiyu).

This marked the beginning of the conservation of the lion (mpologoma in Buganda). 

Kintu reigned around 1200AD and is the first known ruler to use the culture of totemism to conserve wildlife.

He decreed that each family must have two animals to protect because the population of animals was falling drastically due to an influx of people into Buganda.

Each group that came without a totem was assigned one, along with an estate for settlement.  

“... Kintu realised that totems were not mere symbols that represented clans. They were powerful instruments of conservation. Before foreigners came to this land, conservation was long established,” says Taga Nuwagaba, a local artist. 

Collection of paintings

Nuwagaba is now promoting totemism through a collection of paintings of animals, insects and plants under the title, Me and My Totem.

As a study of totems and clans in Uganda, the collection uses realism to convey its message. 

Nuwagaba says, “I was motivated to start the totem project by the fact that most people who have totems have never interfaced with them. Also, totems are powerful instruments. They turn people into voluntary conservationists.

“It is important to focus on this positive culture that could help the conservation process. We need environmental warriors. Local communities have a duty to conserve the environment,” he says. 

“I have created a website: www.mytotem.co.ke and I am sure it will help people learn more. I will be putting on more data as I collect it,” Nuwagaba says. 

He says his totem pieces are not for commercial sale.

“I am keeping this collection together and will sell an item only if the buyer will keep it for public viewing, particularly in Uganda. There are limited editions of each of the paintings ready for sale.” 

The Buganda edition of the Me and My Totem exhibition was held at the Uganda Museum from September 3-15, and at the International School of Uganda from September 16-30.  

Ground breaking experience

Launching the exhibition at the Uganda Museum, Prince David Wasajja of Buganda described this art project as one of a kind; a ground breaking experience whose uniqueness can be perceived in more ways than one. 

The Buganda kingdom has a long history. Researchers have variously posited that Buganda could be the most documented cultural institution in East Africa, said Prince Wasajja.  

“This historical fascination with the kingdom is attributed to, among other things, its ancient totemic traditions. This enduring compliment notwithstanding, many historians have missed the element of conservation. If the developed world knew even a fraction of the contribution of totemism to global conservation of nature, perhaps many wildlife activists would attend this exhibition,” Wasajja said. 

“Nuwagaba has demonstrated a rare ability to document the totems of Uganda, using the unlikely medium of brush and paint. The precision with which he has put together this art project is amazing.

“Taga’s totems of Uganda art potentially mark a turning point in people’s perceptions. He has laid bare the fact that art transcends aesthetics and beauty to perform an instrumental function of education,” said Wasajja. 

He added, “A picture is worth a thousand words. It is uncommon to find an artist who can replicate nature with such precision. Many people know their totems by name, but how many can identify them?” 

The culture of totems has long been used to protect wildlife.

But the question is, how can Ugandans protect what they do not know — animals, birds, plants and insects?

“This special collection of paintings captures the likeness of these rare and special species,” Wasajja noted. 

Totemism comes from the core creation of Buganda society, where ancestors built a system that defined and determined what one was going to be — the food to be eaten, whom to marry, and even what one was to do as a life skill.

Totems are a fabric of Buganda’s system of administration. 

The totem and the clan

It is important to distinguish between the totem and the clan. A clan is determined by genealogy while a totem is a symbol to represent the clan.

The two are intimately connected. Names are given depending on one’s clan. It is taboo for a Muganda to eat his or her totem.  

Before the 1966 crisis that led to the abolition of kingdoms in Uganda, the Baganda had 52 totems.

But by the time the kingdom was re-established in 1993, some clans like Enkebuka, Olukato, and Embuzi had been phased out.

The current king has approved some new clans, like Omutima Omusaggi (ground pineapple), Mmamba Kakoboza (ling-fish) and Engabi Enyunga (bushbuck).

This has brought the official number of Baganda clans to 50.

Soon, Nuwagaba hopes to extend his project to other tribes in Uganda.

“I started with Buganda because that is where I live. Also, the culture is better documented in Buganda than in many parts of the country. I will be moving into the other regions of Uganda to do the same if I get the support.” 

To supplement the conservation efforts in the country, the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre earlier this year adopted Buganda’s totem system.

The centre’s executive director, Dr Andrew Seguya, said that in the old days, the Baganda knew that it was taboo to kill and eat one’s totem.

“If we re-invent this, it may be a useful in conservation efforts.” 

Similar projects

Nuwagaba’s project is related to a similar one by the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre.

He says: “The two are related but different. The one by UWEC is about children’s views on totems and the stories they have heard.

“This one here is based on documented literature, history and research. It has images that can help people, young and old, identify species. I painted these images to bring out their intrinsic detail.” 

Nuwagaba says Uganda’s fine art is growing, albeit with challenges. 

“Fine art, like other forms of art, has been getting better. Art is a barometer of a country’s economy. When art grows, it basically means something good in the economy is happening. And when art declines, something is amiss.”  

He adds: “We have lots of challenges. For one, many artists are busy copying each other. I think we have more artists today than buyers. Artists have to be more creative, more relevant and start producing utilitarian art whose market is bigger than that of liberal art.”